


A Christmas in Russia

by plazorr



Series: After the disband [3]
Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F, F/M, Post-Canon, no spoiler in the tags
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2020-07-12 02:20:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19938547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plazorr/pseuds/plazorr
Summary: 5 years after µ's disbandedEli takes Nozomi to Russia for Christmas





	A Christmas in Russia

**Author's Note:**

> I am really happy about how this chapter turned. I had a lot of hesitations again about some details, but this time i didn't change much things compared to the original idea. Since the chapter is happening in Russia, some dialogues are said in Russian. So if text is in italic, it's in Russian ^^  
> This is my longest chapter yet and if another one happens to be that long, i might cut it in a 2-part chapter. But for this one, especially this early in the serie, it wouldn't make sense to cut it. I still can't establish some publication dates for the next chapters because my timetable is as hectic as possible, but i still enjoy writing so they will come :p  
> Anyway, enough useless talk. I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter :)

"Please remain seated for we are about to land in Moscow" the flight attendant said.

Eli was trying to stay calm, but she didn't like at all this plane. Sure, it was comfortable, the food wasn't disgusting and the attendants were really nice, but something else was bothering her.

"You seem lost in thoughts Eli. You want to talk about it?" a voice said on her left

It was Nozomi. Of course, it was so easy for her to read Eli's mind.

"Oh, it's just that I’ve never come back to Russia since I left with my babushka. It feels a bit weird to be back for a bit."

"Sure, but you are not telling me all there is on your mind." Nozomi said with a smug face.

"... It's too easy for you to know what I’m thinking." Eli said with a resigned expression.

"Hehe it's what happens when I spend so much time with someone." she replied with a satisfied smile "So, are you going to answer or do I need to 'grab' the answers from you?"

"Nozomi, please, not here!" the blonde said with a glimpse of fear in her eyes. "Ok, ok, I’ll tell you..."

Eli took a deep breath, wondering if she should tell her what was really bothering her. Would she be able to tell if those are lies? Probably ... Over those past years, it was almost as if Nozomi already knew what would happen all the time. It has been impossible to prepare a surprise party for any of her birthdays because she seemed to always know exactly where every of their friends were hiding or when it would happen. She acted surprised, but Eli could clearly see at her faint smile that she knew. And when she asked her afterwards if she knew, she simply said to not tell the others because they liked to think they took her by surprise.

Maybe this time it could work though?

"I ... I hate planes" Eli said

"That's it?"

"Yes, I'm afraid ok. I hate to sound so scared all the time, but that's how I feel. I hate that we are closer to the sun, above the clouds, I hate all of it."

"Do you want to hear something funny about this?" Nozomi said with an enigmatic smile.

"I'm listening."

"The distance from the Earth to the Sun is around 150 million kilometers and the average height of a commercial flying like this one is around 10 kilometers. This means that if you made the ratio between when we were on the ground and now, we got only 0.00000007% closer to the Sun. It feels like a lot from our point of view, but it's actually nothing. It makes you wonder what we are in the grand scheme of things doesn't it? What feels like a huge jump up is actually not even the slightest bump. On the other hand, our atmosphere is around 500 km thick. Well 480 to be exact, but let's continue with 500, it's easier. If we make a ratio like before, we went up by 2%. This sure doesn't seem a lot by itself, right? But if you compare it with the 0.00000007% from before, it seems a lot. This is the magic of proportions, you see?"

Eli and Nozomi stayed silent for a few seconds before Eli broke it.

"Nozomi, this doesn't make any sense. Is this the kind of shit you are telling your students?"

"First of all, such mean words hold no place in such a beautiful mouth." Nozomi answered. "Second thing, while you were trying to give sense to what I was saying, we landed and you didn't even notice: thank me later."

Eli watched through the window and it was true. They were on the ground.

"You never cease to amaze me, thank you Nozomi." she said with a smile.

"Geez, I told you to say thanks later, do you even listen?" she said through her smile. "Now come, we shouldn't let your parents wait."

Eli was glad she could avoid telling Nozomi what was truly on her mind for now and was relieved from it. She stood up and they were about to leave the plane when Nozomi grabbed her wrist.

"Oh and, by the way Eli, when you are ready to talk about what was really on your mind, you can always come to me."

... There was no escaping from Nozomi's eye it seemed.

"You know, I was really scared in that damned flying thing." she said with a pout.

"Sure baby, sure"

When she could lay her eyes on her motherland, Eli was feeling butterflies in her stomach. It was beautiful. In December, it is always full of snow, more than any of the winters she had spent in Tokyo. The temperature was at -1 Celsius degrees, which was pretty mild for the season. She remembered that time when she was a child and the thermometer had frozen. She was happy to be back where she was born, but she also realized that the winter gear she bought with Nozomi was absolutely not suited to withstand the Siberian winds. And from the blue that had started to paint her friend's cheeks, she could see she had come to the same conclusion. But only from her eyes peeking through her anti-frost clothe armor, Eli could tell that the one that came with her was smiling from ear to ear. And, to be totally fair, she knew it was probably the same for her own face.

Eli's parents were waiting for her just outside of the airport. Her mother was from Japan. Her face was really looking like Eli's and the family links between the two were undeniable. The main difference was her short brown hair and her 55 summers. And the Nordic giant on her side of course. Her father seemed to have only given her his hair color. The man had a very square and hairy face. He had a jolly expression, but, from Nozomi's point of view, his eyes showed it wasn’t always the case and he was usually a more serious person.

" _Elichika, I am so happy to see you again!_ " he screamed on the top of his lungs when the two girls showed up.

Seeing this laughing giant running towards them was a bit of a surprise to Nozomi. The description Eli had made was one of a very harsh man that would always push her to her limits and was only worried about her career. Maybe time and the separation with his daughters had soften him?

The bear man hugged his daughter without realizing there was another girl near her at first. He eventually noticed her.

"Oh, you must be Elichika's friend?" he said in a decent Japanese. "I hope you will like our country!"

And on those words, he pulled one arm from Eli and used it to grab both of them in a hearty hug. During that moment, Eli and Nozomi's eyes crossed and Nozomi understood why Eli was nervous during the landing.

"This trip here makes me believe I already know Eli a lot better." Nozomi said with a facade laughter

She had realized Eli's father had called her "Eli's friend".

He didn't know they were not friends, but girlfriends.

" _Elichika, the letters from you and your sister have been our rays of sunlight for the last years_." Eli's father said during the travel to their home.

He was driving a minivan and Eli's mother was sitting next to him. On the back, Eli and Nozomi were sitting next to each other.

" _I am happy to hear that father. Alisa wished she could come, but she is busy studying for her exams_."

" _I can understand that and I respect your sister for her decision. Studies are the most important things._ " he replied. " _I heard you were done with yours. Have you already found where you will work?_ "

" _The law firm I stayed in for my last internship were satisfied with my work and they said they'd like to hire me. I'll start to work there the 19th of January_."

" _This is good, but you could have probably started your work a week earlier I think_." he said with a displeased tone.

" _After we come back home, I was planning to go with Nozomi visit her parents. Since she came with me here, it is only fair_ " Eli said with a look at her girlfriend.

Nozomi had heard her name in the conversation, but her Russian wasn't good enough yet to allow her to fully understand the conversation. All she could do was look at Eli with a neutral expression. She had been looking at the landscapes for a while now and she would have found it a magnificent place if she wasn't so worried and a bit angry about the fact Eli didn't tell her parents about their relationship.

"We have been dating each other for 3 years now, it's not like it's new or just a passing fad. We are a couple..." she was thinking. "If she won't tell them, it was no use coming here in the first place."

" _Having a trusted friend is good Elichika, but you shouldn't let her get in your job's way_." the father said with conviction. " _You should never forget that your career and your family are what will define who you are_."

" _My employers said that the delay was ok for them as it would give them more time to prepare my arrival. They didn't seem displeased at all_ "

" _If you say so, I will trust your judgement..."_ he said with a doubtful expression.

They spent one and a half hour in the minivan before stopping at the house. It was of a modest size, but Nozomi had stayed in smaller places with her own parents years ago. She had been thinking about them a lot since she learned that Eli didn't tell theirs about her. Nozomi had told her parents about her relationship with the half-Russian beauty after 6 months. She thought it was long enough to be sure this kind of relationship was what they both wanted. It was tough for them to hear that their daughter was a lesbian, but they got over it in the end and told her they wanted to meet Eli. Of course, those were only words from them as every time Nozomi asked them if they could come to their house, they said they were about to move out and that it would be better to come to them in their new place. And when Nozomi called them shortly after, they wouldn’t answer and would later tell that they had been “crazy busy” lately but that it would be better soon. This scenario lasted for the last 2 years. But for once, they seemed to have settled down. They had stopped working and were now living peacefully in a small town in Shizuoka. She was supposed to spend 1 week here with Eli's parents for Christmas and then be back with her girlfriend to go spend New Year's Eve with her parents.

A pressure from Eli on her shoulder took Nozomi out of her thoughts. A brown-haired young man was walking out of the house towards them. He seemed to be around his 20's, probably 19 according to Nozomi's instinct.

"This is my cousin Dimitri." she said. "He's living here while my aunt recovers at the hospital from an injury, he'll spend Christmas here too."

"The more the merrier I guess."

Nozomi then whispered into Eli's hear.

"Do we at least sleep in the same room?"

Eli was flustered by the question and only managed to stammer something close to a "yes" before Dimitri came to greet them.

" _Hello cousin, it is a pleasure to see you again after all this time, but let me tell you, the pleasure to meet your friend is even greater_."

" _What?"_ she could only say.

The two girls were unpacking their stuff in their room. Eli's mother was busy preparing dinner while her father was splitting some firewood for the evening. Even though they had access to all the modern comfort, he insisted to keep using the fireplace as the main way to heat the house. He said that staying together near it would strengthen their bonds. Dimitri was back in his own room, preparing, according to what he told Eli, his plan to show Nozomi "the Nordic man experience". When looking at Eli's visible confusion and the way he was looking at her, Nozomi didn't need to understand Russian to understand what he wanted. This was amusing to the Japanese girl as that guy was asking her girlfriend tips to seduce her.

"You know Eli ..." Nozomi started. "Since I officially have no special someone, maybe I should accept your cousin's offer, he seems like a nice guy."

Eli was shocked, both at the neutral tone she had used and the words by themselves. But after a half second, she realized those were Nozomi's words and she was just teasing her.

"I thought we had overcome this, Eli" she continued as she sat next to her. "Are you down that road again?"

"No, it's not that. I will never be completely free from this angst, but I am living with it and I don't let it slow me down anymore."

Eli took a pause and Nozomi took her hand.

"It's just that, if I officialize our relation, my father will understand he'll never achieve his biggest dream."

"Did he want to see you with a man that much?"

"My hypothetical husband wouldn't be that important. What he truly wants is the continuation of his bloodline: he wants grandchildren."

Nozomi raised an eyebrow. She had not really considered children yet and would have preferred to adopt one or two if her relationship with Eli came to that. A sperm donation would resolve that situation, but Nozomi wasn’t sure about that as she didn’t really want Eli to be pregnant alone and having a double pregnancy would be very difficult. Anyway, it was something they’d have to probably discuss someday, but not now. Now, she had to comfort her.

"If it's all that matters, there is still Alisa. Sure, she's not really in the mood to search for a husband right now, but eventually ..."

"It is not that simple Nozomi" Eli interrupted her.

Nozomi took a deeper look at her lover's face and noticed the tears that were flowing from her eyes.

"Alisa, she ... she is afflicted with endometriosis..." she managed to say. "And her medical case is particularly severe according to the doctors."

She was leaning more and more on Nozomi as she was talking and all she could do was give her a shoulder while she was talking.

"For the longest time, whenever that cursed thing was making her suffer, I felt so guilty. As her big sister, I wanted to take her pain on me and help her carry it. But that’s impossible of course…”

"This is not your fault Eli."

"The worst part about this is that she can't become a mother with that thing. You know, we were supposed to come together with babushka to Japan. But she couldn't come with me because of this, she had her first period and she kept telling how she didn’t feel good at all. We understood there was something fishy but didn’t think it would go that far. Even the doctor hadn’t seen such a severe case in his career. My parents took her to the hospital and tried to find something here that would help her. They contacted every association related to endometriosis but nothing could help Alisa... I’m the only one that is able to continue my father’s bloodline"

Nozomi had gotten used to her girlfriend’s episodic depressive moments and knew approximately how to handle them by now. She always tried to be there for her because if she wasn’t there, she knew that Eli would try to find comfort with the bottle of vodka she knew she was always carrying. Even now, Nozomi could see one of them peeking through Eli’s mantle’s pocket.

"Listen Eli, I can't tell you I understand what your family went through because this seems to have been horrible..." Nozomi said with a soft voice.

"I can't deny him the right to grandchildren..."

"... But you have to ask yourself if you want to live for yourself or if you want to live for your father's dreams."

"I want to sleep Nozomi."

Her voice was broken and she was clearly close to falling asleep.

"Close your eyes princess, I'll tell your parents you are tired from the flight" she said as she headpatted Eli

"Thank you Nozomi, I lo..."

Eli didn't finish her sentence and just fell asleep like that, with a bit of snort leaking from her nose, red marks from crying on her face and started to snore.

"Yes, my beautiful princess, I love you too ..." Nozomi thought.

She put a blanket on her, a kiss on her lips and turned off the light before leaving the room.

For the rest of their stay, Eli managed to stay jolly with her family. She told them about her life in Japan even though her letters covered most of her stories already. She would avoid any story about her life as a couple with Nozomi of course, which would make her a bit sad. But she knew that it was something Eli had to take a decision about herself. She couldn't tell Mr. and Ms. Ayase about that part just like that even if every fiber of her being wanted to. However, maybe she could help her sweet half clarify her own feelings if she played the right cards.

In the meantime, she learned to know the house owners. Dimitri was as undertaking about her as he was the first day. It was funny to hear him try to tell pre-made Japanese expressions he saw on the internet. She would reply with a laughter that would leave him confused and walked away to find another person to talk with. Eli's mother was the perfect housewife and she didn't have a lot of hobbies. She mostly talked about how she made sure the house was clean and shared a few of her secrets with Nozomi. She also talked about her years in Japan and how she wished Nozomi to find a man that would make her as happy as her husband has made her happy. This would embarrass the Japanese girl as she knew she had found the person that would fulfill all her needs and wishes, but that person wasn't a man, but the daughter of the person she was talking to. Her father on the other hand, seemed like nothing could stop him once he started talking about his family and his ancestors. He was feeling a great pride from the deeds of the previous Ayases and his eyes sparkled at the idea of what the future ones would accomplish. It is only by talking with him that Nozomi realized how much he treasured his blood. And, from seeing him, she had to admit he would make an amazing grandfather with his epic stories, his strength that would help him to keep an eye on unruly children that didn’t seem any close to fading or his joyful expressions. It was a gentle giant like she hadn’t ever seen.

During the final days, Eli was clearly shaken by her dilemma. Her family didn’t seem to notice that or maybe they thought it was none of their business. As the days past and Christmas neared, her bottle was becoming emptier each passing day.

And on the 24th, it was completely empty and she had gotten a new one, which didn’t last very long. Nozomi noticed her dizziness and smiled as she knew it was time for her to set her plan in motion. She went to her room and saw her princess trying to hide her vodka as fast as she could, which wasn’t very fast. Nozomi, however, chose to act as if she hadn’t noticed.

“Hey baby, would you mind coming to help me and your cousin with the dinner?”

“Well, yes, of course Nozomi.” Eli answered while swaying from left to right. “Just let me gather myself for a few minutes and I’ll come.”

Nozomi’s face suddenly showed a lot of sadness.

“Yes, take all your time. It’s not like I want to spend Christmas with you or anything. Or if I wanted to talk to your parents about us. Or if this whole trip was a mistake from the very start!”

She had raised her voice more than her interlocutor expected it. Eli was brought back to reality by it and tried to think of something to say, but the alcohol in her blood wasn’t really helping there.

“… Nozomi, I’m sorry… I just … I don’t know …” she managed to stutter.

“Yeah, I realize you don’t know.”

She shed a tear and left the room running.

“Nozomi wait!” Eli screamed brokenly while staggering out too in a desperate attempt to follow her girlfriend.

But a drunken girl’s running speed was not enough to follow the ex-idol. Eli only saw her disappear behind the corridor angle. She felt devastated as she went back to the room. She felt like her place right now was not by her side. The Russian girl looked at the bottle that was half covered by a blanket on her bed.

Nozomi was smiling on the other side of the corridor.

“If I wasn’t so happy to be a teacher, I would have made an exceptional actress” she thought. “But I shouldn’t let myself get carried away, I’m starting to sound like Nico. Now, it’s time for phase 2.”

She knew how Eli would handle such a situation. First, self-deprecation. Second, anger. Third, regret. Fourth, listening to her feelings. This was how she had joined µ’s so many years ago and she hadn’t changed her way of solving problems since then. She just tended to add alcohol to the equation these days. This is a demon Nozomi knew they would have to face togehter some day, but not now. For now, she knew Eli wouldn’t abandon it: it was too early since her breakdown in that café in Akihabara. Time needed to pass…

“So, cousin my not coming?” Dimitri asked, visibly very proud of his horrible Japanese pronunciation and grammar.

“No Dimitri, she is not” Nozomi answered, amused by the way he was really still trying to get her.

“This is sad, cousin makes good pastries”

“Well, your aunt told us to make some so let’s get to it” she said by trying to articulate as much as possible so he could understand.

Seeing he didn’t get it, she pointed to the worktable and gestured the act of preparing food so he would see what she wanted to tell. It was an intelligent young man who simply didn’t speak her language, so he understood and started to prepare his part while Nozomi was doing hers. He kept on trying to tell her how he would make an excellent husband and enunciated his many qualities in a Japanese that didn’t become any better. She stayed polite and, to be fair with herself, she had to admit that his commitment was impressive. Even though they didn’t speak the same language and she didn’t manifest any interest for him, he still tried. If he manages to find a girl that isn’t in love with another girl in the future, he might make her very happy.

Time passed like that when Nozomi started hearing some noise in the stairs. She understood it was time for the next phase of her masterplan. She began to laugh at something Dimitri was saying, which left him surprised and proud. When Eli appeared in the kitchen, Nozomi quickly stopped, and adopted a discomforted expression while moving one step away from the young man.

“Oh, Eli?” she said with a tone like she was caught in the act of doing something bad. “We didn’t expect you to join us in the end.”

Now that Nozomi had put her in front of the possibility of losing her, even though it wouldn’t happen, she knew that the decision coming from Eli now would be the one from her heart and not her head. And this is what happened. Though, Nozomi didn’t expect it to go as far as what was about to happen. Eli moved to the table and looked her cousin dead in the eyes.

“ _Do not approach my girlfriend_.” she said as she threw a right hook directly into his chin.

The man was sent flying to the side from the unexpected impact and got knocked out as pan fell on his head. The situation was so ridiculous the Russian girl couldn’t hold her laughter. Her parents, hearing the noise, came running to the kitchen and saw a scene they didn’t expect to see. Dimitri was lying on the floor while their daughter was hanging to the neck of the one that was supposed to be her friend, one hand around it and one hand on her breast and her tongue deep inside the other’s mouth. When she noticed them, Eli moved away with a big suction noise and smiled at them.

“ _Surprise, I’m gay!_ ” she yelled before passing out from the emotion and the alcohol.

So, the situation evolved to the 2 youngest Ayases in the house fainted on the floor and their daughter’s female lover standing there a bit confused and a bit relieved. She looked at them with a nervous smile.

“It seems I will have to be the one explaining everything about this situation.”

“Yes, young lady, you will” Mr. Ayase replied, still not sure what he had just witnessed.

The cacophony inside Eli’s head made her wake up in the middle of the next afternoon. She groaned as she tried to stay up but was stopped both by the world spinning around her and one hand on each on her shoulders. As she looked to the right, she saw Nozomi with a book in her other hand, a child’s book. It was in fact one of the books she used as a kid to learn the Cyrillic alphabet. She smiled at the thought of her girlfriend learning her language with the same books as her. She was smiling as she turned her head to the left and saw her father. Her mother was just behind him.

“ _Elichika, you haven’t missed Dimitri: he only woke up 3 hours after your punch and he keeps a bag of ice near him. I’m glad you haven’t forgotten my boxing lessons._ ”

“ _I’m sorry father, I don’t know what went through my head. In fact, I don’t remember much about last evening…_ “

“ _To be fair, Elichika, if someone had approached your mother the way Dimitri approached Nozomi, I wouldn’t have only thrown one punch.”_

Eli’s face became as white as the snow falling outside. She didn’t remember exactly what had happened before and visibly, her parents knew about her true relationship with Nozomi. She was about to faint again, but a pressure on her right shoulder made her remain conscious.

“ _Wait, what are you saying?_ ” she stuttered.

“ _We know Elichika.”_ Her father said _. “We know that you are in a romantic relationship with another girl and we also know why you didn’t want to tell us about her._ ”

Eli seemed to become whiter every second. She looked at Nozomi who had just removed her hand from her shoulder. She seemed to have already heard what he was about to say.

“ _Father, I’m sorry. Allow me to explain …_ ” she started.

“ _No Elichika, you will be the one listening to me._ ”

Eli was resigned, this was how her father always started to talk when she was a child, she had done something bad and was about to be punished.

“ _When I learned you were a lesbian by seeing you kissing another girl in the middle of our kitchen, I was angry because I felt betrayed by my own blood. When Nozomi told us you were together for such a long period, I was angry because an Ayase never treats his or her loved one with such disdain and you are lucky she didn’t leave you there as other people would have left you there Elichika. And finally, when she told us why you were refusing to tell us about you and her, I felt angry at myself for making you feel like you had to carry the burden of continuing our bloodline_.”

Her father’s look became more distant.

“ _I know I haven’t always been the most affectionate father, I am not one to become overly sentimental and I believe that a good career is something very important to lead a good life. I wish to have grandchildren, it is true, but I don’t want them at the cost of your happiness. If the life that brings you happiness is one that won’t allow you to bear children, then so be it. Elichika, you and your sister are my most important treasures and I only want the best for you two. You shouldn’t let your old dad’s wishes dictate how you will live your life. You are intelligent enough to find your own way. Additionally, we have seen that by your side will be a person that will help you on the right way._ ”

Eli was crying as she hugged her father and Nozomi could swear she heard the giant sob a little, but this was probably only her imagination. The father and his daughter stayed for what seemed like an eternity in each other’s arms before moving away.

_“And, by the way Elichika”_ her father continued _. “She also told us the real reason why you had come here_ ”

Eli was again shocked and nervous.

“ _It will be my pride to walk you_ _down the aisle at your wedding in 3 months_.”


End file.
